Secret Shopping Tips You Can Use At Your Grocery Store
Thursday, July 9th, 2009Zorkler’s super smart shoppers are always on the lookout for a bargain, and many of you know that your local grocer features sale items each week at a great price to get you to walk through their doors. Often they are called “loss leaders”, or “deal of the week” but they’re a not always the great bargain that you might think. Here are a few more secret shopper tips that you may not already know about, and how to avoid getting baited by a grocers ‘sale’.
Don’t fall into the numbers game. A common trend of many grocers use marketing ploys like ‘Buy 10 for $10′ and of course they sound like great bargains, its easy to count. However, you don’t have to buy 10 items to get the $1 unit price. Before you buy, ask yourself, “How many of this item do I need in my food storage until the next sales cycle has this item at its lowest price point again?” and “how much of this will may family use before it’s expired” and also important is “do I have room to store it properly’.
Featured items or those items displayed on an end cap are not always necessarily a super sale item. This is sometimes called a ‘phantom sale’. Manufacturers negotiate a deal with your grocer to feature their specific or, overstocked product prominently within the grocery store, even when/if the items are not at their lowest available price. For example, toilet paper 12 double rolls or 24 single rolls are about $12.00 everyday price. A phantom price sales price of $7.99-$8.99 will be featured on an end cap. Zorklers know better, and by simply waiting a few weeks during the 12-week grocery sale cycle, the toilet paper will be on sale for $5.99-$6.99 or even lower. The 12-week cycle runs continuously, and like stocks you want to buy deep when the price is low, and to buy enough to last you until the next low cycle.
The highest priced items are at eye level. To save money, get in a routine habit of looking towards the top and bottom rows of your grocers shelves. Always be sure to use the “unit price” of items to maximize savings. Look at your shelf price tag, a unit price should be listed here, next to the item’s cost (usually in small print as a per oz or per pound cost). Your grocer knows where your kids eye’s are looking too, watch carefully because higher priced items, or items that will appeal to them are placed at their eye level.
Bulk packaged items are not necessarily the best value. Many think that buying items in bulk automatically equals savings. Those smart retailers and manufacturers caught onto this trend and then started offering larger packaged items at higher prices. Many times it is cheaper to buy the smaller packaged item on sale, again always check your ‘unit prices. To maximize savings use a coupon or wait till a better sale comes along.
Many of the higher priced items are located in the middle of the grocery store. Always shop the perimeters of the store first. The perimeter is where you will find the fresher cuts of meat, bakery goods and produce. In the center aisles, one will usually find the processed and convenience type package food items.
Using the tips above will help you lower your weekly grocery bill.
